* 


ot  «  »'»'«»«/  *,^  .  ^^ 


PRINCETON,    N.    J. 


BX    9225    .173    155 
In  memoriam 


Shelf. 


> 


Itc  lEetncrriam* 


Rev.    DAVID    fRVING,    D.  D. 

Born  August  31ST,  1821. 
Died  October  i2th,  1885. 


David  Irving  was  born  August  3  ist,  1 82 1 ,  near  Annan, 
in  the  district  of  Annandale,  Dumfrieshire,  Scotland.  He 
was  the  third  of  seven  children  of  John  and  Melville 
Drummond  Irving,  four  of  whom  still  survive  him.  His 
early  life  was  spent  in  Annan,  where  he  received  the  greater 
portion  of  his  classical  education.  He  left  Scotland  for 
America  in  his  eighteenth  year,  and  engaged  in  teaching 
for  several  years  in  Mississippi  and  Tennessee.  In  his 
nineteenth  year  he  made  confession  of  his  faith  in  Christ, 
under  the  ministration  of  Rev.  S.  M.  Williamson  of  Ten- 
nessee, and  three  years  afterward,  having  decided  to  study 
for  the  ministry,  he  entered  the  Theological  Seminary  of 
Princeton,  N.  J.  On  his  graduation  he  offered  himself, 
as  a  missionary,  to  the  Presbyterian  Board  of  Foreign 
Missions,  and  having  been  accepted  he  was  appointed  to 
Futtchgurh,  Northern  India.  He  was  ordained  as  an 
evangelist  by  the  Presbytery  of  Western  District  at  Mem- 
phis, Tennessee,  in  June,    1846,  the  charge  having  been 


delivered  by  his  former  pastor,  Rev.  Mr.  Williamson.  The 
services  were  said  to  have  been  unusually  impressive  and 
solemn,  as  he  was  the  first  missionary  that  had  ever  gone 
from  that  Presbytery  to  the  heathen.  On  June  23d,  of 
that  same  year,  he  was  married  to  Elizabeth  Martin,  eldest 
daughter  of  the  late  Dr.  Alfred  and  Eliza  Freeman,  of  New 
York.  He  embarked  at  Boston,  August,  1846,  in  a  sailing 
vessel,  bound  direct  to  Calcutta,  which  he  reached  after  a 
long  voyage  of  nearly  six  months.  The  climate  of  India 
being  unsuited  to  the  constitution  of  his  wife,  he  was 
obliged  to  return  home  after  having  labored  in  the  field  for 
over  two  years.  Though  he  was  thus  compelled  to  leave 
the  foreign  field,  his  interest  in  the  missionary  work  never 
ceased.  His  love  for  India  was  especially  strong,  for  there 
he  had  come  in  personal  contact  with  the  heathen ;  there 
he  had  made  many  friends  among  his  fellow  missionaries, 
and  there  he  had  buried  his  first-born  child.  On  his  return 
to  this  country  he  took  charge  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
of  North  Salem,  New  York,  for  five  years,  when  he  was 
called  to  the  pastorate  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Morristown,  New  Jersey.  Here  he  labored  for  ten  years, 
when  he  resigned  to  accept  the  position  of  Corresponding 
Secretary  of  the  Presbyterian  Board  of  Foreign  Missions, 
and  removed  to  Orange,  New  Jersey,  one  year  later.  In 
1884  he  was  sent  as  a  delegate  to  the  Pan-Presbyterian 


Council,  which  met  in  Belfast,  Ireland.  During  the  intervals 
of  the  sessions  of  the  Council  he  went  with  a  large  body  of 
the  delegates  on  an  excursion  to  the  Giant's  Causeway,  and 
in  returning  from  there  to  Portrush  he  was  thrown  from  a 
jaunting  car  into  the  road  with  such  force  as  to  break  his 
leg,  and  produce  a  nervous  shock,  from  which  he  never 
recovered.  His  injuries,  after  a  year  of  partial  recovery, 
ended  in  a  general  paralysis  of  his  whole  system,  which 
carried  him  slowly  to  the  grave.  After  having  endured 
intense  sufferings  for  several  weeks,  death  finally  released 
him  from  all  his  pains  on  the  morning  of  October  12th, 
and  earth  was  exchanged  for  heaven.  "  Precious  in  the 
sight  of  the  Lord,  is  the  death  of  His  saints." 


The  Funeral  Services  were  held  on  Thursday  after- 
noon, October  15th,  at  half-past  three  o'clock,  from  the 
Central  Presbyterian  Church  of  Orange,  New  Jersey.  After 
selections  from  the  Scriptures  had  been  read  by  Rev.  Alfred 
Yeomans,  D.  D.,  pastor  of  the  deceased,  and  prayer  offered 
by  Rev.  William  M.  Paxton,  D.D.,  of  Princeton  Theological 
Seminary,  at  the  house,  the  relatives  and  friends,  together 
with  the  members  of  the  Board  of  Foreign  Missions,  pro- 
ceeded to  the  church.  The  services  there  were  opened 
with  singing  the  hymn  : 

"  Nearer  my  God  to  Thee," 

by  a  quartette  choir.  The  Scriptures  were  then  read  by 
Rev.  Alfred  Yeomans,  D.  D.  Addresses  were  delivered  by 
Rev.  J.  D.  Wells,  D.  D.,  President  of  the  Board  of  Foreign 
Missions ;  Rev.  John  Hall,  D.  D.,  President  of  the  Board 
of  Home  Missions  ;  and  Rev.  Alfred  Yeomans,  D.  D. 
Prayer  was  then  offered  by  Rev.  Henry  F.  Hickok,  D.  D., 


pastor  of  the  Second  Presbyterian  (Brick)  Church  of 
Orange.     After  the  choir  had  sung  the  hymn  : 

"Holy  Spirit,  faithful  Guide," 

the  benediction  was  pronounced  by  Rev.  Dr.  Wells.  The 
interment  took  place  at  Greenwood  Cemetery,  on  Friday, 
October  i6th.  Prayer  was  offered  at  the  grave  by  Rev. 
Arthur  Mitchell,  D.  D.,  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the 
Board  of  Foreign  Missions. 


ADDRESS  BY  REV.  J.  D.  WELLS,  D.  D. 


It  has  long  been  known  by  the  friends  of  Dr.  Irving, 
that  he  was  decHning  in  health.  Refusing  to  spare  himself 
while  he  could  work,  unwittingly  perhaps,  he  went  beyond 
the  line  of  safety,  and  hastened  the  time  of  his  departure. 
The  injury,  received  by  him  in  the  north  of  Ireland,  was 
not  the  beginning  of  his  decline. 

On  his  return  from  abroad,  whither  he  w^ent,  not  only 
for  rest,  but  also  to  represent  the  Board  of  Foreign  Missions, 
at  the  great  council  of  Presbyterian  Ministers  and  laymen 
in  Belfast,  Ireland,  he  was  so  changed  in  appearance  —  had 
aged  so  much — that  coming  suddenly  into  his  presence, 
as  he  leant  heavily  upon  his  staff,  one  might  easily 
have  mistaken  him  for  another  person.  Precisely  this 
happened  to  me,  although  I  had  known  him  well  for  many 
years. 


lO 

When  I  last  saw  him  at  the  Mission  Rooms,  early  in 
the  summer,  he  was  making  anxious  inquiry  as  to  his  duty 
in  relation  to  the  Board.  Loving  the  service  in  which,  for 
twenty  years,  he  had  been  earnestly  engaged,  and  yet, 
unwilling  to  hold  a  place  that  he  could  not  fill,  he  asked,  of 
one  and  another  in  whose  judgment  he  had  confidence, 
what  he  should  do?  —  lay  down  his  office  as  Secretary  of 
the  Board  ?  or  wait  and  see  what  the  Lord  would  do  for 
him  as  the  summer  passed  ? 

I  am  thankful  that  he  waited,  and  that  he  has  now  gone 
to  the  Master's  presence,  bearing  the  office  that  he  loved  so 
well,  and  filled  with  such  honor  to  himself,  and  blessing  to 
a  cause,  than  which  there  is  no  greater  in  all  the  world. 

We  are  gathered  now  in  the  presence  of  his  sacred 
relics.  We  believe  that  "The  souls  of  believers  are  at  their 
death  made  perfect  in  holiness,  and  do  immediately  pass 
into  glory,  and  their  bodies,  being  still  united  to  Christ,  do 
rest  in  the  grave  until  the  resurrection."  For  our  dear 
brother  we  have  only  congratulations.  We  share,  and,  if 
possible,  would  mitigate  the  sorrows  of  those  from  whose 
home-life  he  is  taken,  not  to  return. 

But  may  we  not  enter  somewhat  into  the  joy  of  our 
Lord,  who  receives  unto  Himself  a  "good  and  faithful 
servant,"  purchased  with  His  own  blood;  and  also  into  the  joy 
of  our  brother,  who  has  gone  to  be  "forever  with  the  Lord"  ? 


II 

Too  littte,  perhaps,  on  occasions  like  this,  do  we  give 
our  thoughts  to  the  heavenward  side  of  dying;  —  the  gain 
to  Christ  and  heaven,  and  to  those  who  leave  us  for  heaven, 
of  having  the  life  here  close,  and  the  life  there  open.  As 
surely  as  "All  things  are  ours,  whether  Paul,  or  Apollos, 
or  Cephas,  or  the  world,  or  life,  or  death,  or  things  present, 
or  things  to  come,"  and,  "all  things  work  together  for  good 
to  them  that  love  God:  —  to  them  that  are  the  called 
according  to  His  purpose;" — so  surely,  I  believe,  that  the 
work  our  Lord  is  doing  on  the  earth,  for  the  saving  of  men, 
by  the  ministry  of  His  church  and  of  holy  angels,  is  not 
hindered,  but  rather  helped,  when  He  receives  His  servants 
to  Himself  It  is  He  that  goeth  forth  conquering  and  to 
conquer.  He  is  never  defeated  by  His  foes  ;  and  He  surely 
does  not  pause  or  falter  in  His  path  of  conquest,  when  the 
faithful  come  at  His  call  to  the  end  of  their  course,  and 
enter  into  rest  and  glory.  We  may  not  say,  that  they  are 
called  hence,  and  thither,  to  share,  more  powerfully  than 
ever,  in  the  very  work  that  fell  from  their  weary  hands 
here,  for  this  is  not  revealed.  But  it  is  revealed  that,  while 
they  rest  from  their  labors,  their  works  do  follow  them  : 
follow  them  to  the  presence  of  Christ,  for  recognition  and 
reward ;  and  follow  them,  in  the  sense  of  remaining  on  the 
earth  for  study  and  imitation. 


12 


Let  me  say  in  a  word  just  here  that,  in  these  times  of 
sorrow,  we  find  how  true  it  is  that  "  God  is  our  refuge  and 
strength,  a  very  present  help  in  trouble."  We  seek  relief 
in  more  intimate  fellowship  with  Him.  We  remember  that 
"  Like  as  a  father  pitieth  his  children,  so  the  Lord  pitieth 
them  that  fear  Him."  We  learn  how  good  it  is  to  embrace 
His  will,  to  commit  our  personal  and  family  affairs,  and  the 
interests  of  His  kingdom  to  His  strong  hands  and  wise 
decrees ;  to  say  with  our  Saviour,  not  only  "  Father,  save 
me  from  this  hour," — but  also,  "  Father,  glorify  Thy  name  ;" 
to  welcome  to  our  hearts  as  an  abiding  Guest  the  other 
Comforter,  and  to  consider  that  He  gives  comfort,  as  the 
"  Spirit  of  Truth','  by  the  doctrines  and  promises  of  the 
Scriptures,  into  the  real  knowledge  and  love  of  which  He 
.alone  can  lead  us. 

But  may  we  not  also  dwell  with  sacred  joy  and 
gratitude,  upon  the  graces  and  the  work  of  those  who  go 
from  our  homes  and  fellowship,  to  the  presence  of  our 
Lord? 

Dr.  Irving  did  not  waste,  and  so  lose  the  sixty-four 
years  of  his  life.  His  first  twenty  years  were  a  preparation 
for  all  that  followed.  Before  entering  the  ministry  he  was 
a  teacher.  From  his  ordination  as  an  evangelist,  after 
three  years  in  Princeton  Seminary, — i.  c,  from  1846  to 
1849, — he  was  a  missionary  of  our  Board  in  northern  India. 


13 

These  were  years  in  which  he  was  getting  ready,  although 
he  knew  it  not,  for  what  proved  to  be  his  great  life 
work.  Eager  for  knowledge ;  with  a  mind  tenacious  of 
facts ;  careful  in  his  generalizations ;  searching  for  guiding 
principles  in  mission  work,  and  finding  them  ;  loving  the 
souls  for  whom  he  watched,  and  his  brethren  with  whom 
he  was  associated  ;  knowing  well  the  difficulties  of  the  work, 
and  the  trials,  as  well  as  the  joys,  of  missionary  life  and 
service  ;  he  left  the  field,  not  because  he  wished  to,  but 
because  necessity  was  laid  upon  him,  and  he  never  ceased 
to  look  upon  it  with  loving  eye. 

From  1850  to  1855,  he  was  stated  supply  of  a  Presby- 
terian Church  in  North  Salem,  New  York,  and  from  1855 
to  1865,  pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  in  Morris- 
town,  New  Jersey.  Thus,  for  about  fifteen  consecutive 
years,  he  was  preaching  the  gospel  in  this  land,  and  moving 
the  people,  whom  he  served,  to  largest  possible  co-operation 
in  the  great  work  of  the  world's  evangelization. 

It  was  Dr.  Irving's  known  zeal,  and  his  success  in 
developing,  and,  by  God's  blessing,  sustaining  a  missionary 
spirit  in  the  churches  served  by  him  that  led  to  his 
appointment  as  a  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Board  of 
Foreign  Missions,  in  the  year  1865.  During  all  the  years 
since  that  date,  as  a  member  of  the  Board,  I  have  been  in 
somewhat  intimate  relations  to  him. 


14 

There  is  an  impression,  shared  by  many  wlio  have  no 
love  for  the  cause  of  Christ,  and  by  some.  I  am  sorry  to 
say,  who  certainly  do  love  it,  that  the  office  of  Secretary 
of  the  Board  of  Foreign  Missions,  indeed  of  any  Board  of 
the  Church,  and  especially  that  office  held  in  common  with 
two  or  three  others,  if  not  a  sinecure,  can  never  overtax  or 
even  severely  tax,  the  mind  and  nerve  of  any  one  who  holds  it. 

I  believe  that  Dr.  Irving  shortened  his  life  by  over- 
work, and  by  failing  to  take  occasional  and  much  needed 
rest.  He  worked  in  the  office,  in  the  cars,  and  at  his  home. 
He  worked  in  the  pulpits  of  many  churches ;  in  Presby- 
teries, Synods,  and  General  Assemblies.  He  corresponded 
with  missionaries  in  the  field,  and  shared  in  the  responsible 
oversight  of  their  work,  and  of  the  entire  work  of  the 
Board.  For  years  he  did  royal  service  as  editor  of  the 
Foreign  Missionary.  This  required  large  reading,  and 
much  use  of  the  pen.  Its  results  were  seen  in  many 
articles  of  great  value  and  power.  They  attracted  the 
attention,  and  won  the  admiration  of  good  men  and  women 
on  more  than  one  continent,  although  they  were  sadly 
overlooked  by  many  pastors  and  churches  in  our  own  land. 

And  this  leads  me  to  add,  that  a  large  part  of  his 
work,  as  of  that  done  by  his  associates,  was  carried  forward 
without  the  loving  appreciation  of  those  whose  representa- 
tive he  was,  and  his  surviving  brethren  are. 


15 

We,  that  are  pastors,  live  among  our  people.  We 
stand  face  to  face,  and  heart  to  heart,  with  them,  week  after 
week,  and  year  after  year.  We  visit  their  homes,  and  they 
ours.  It  is  a  perpetual  joy  and  in.spiration  to  see  them,  to 
hear  their  prayers  in  our  behalf,  and  now  and  then  to  be 
told  that  our  ministry  helps  them  onward  and  upward  in 
the  Christian  life. 

The  absence  of  all  this  from  the  life  of  a  Secretary,  and 
especially  of  one  who  has  been  for  many  years  in  the 
pastoral  relation,  makes  the  strain  of  mind  and  heart  and 
nerve  very  severe.  Nothing  but  love  to  the  Master  and 
souls,  with  the  inspiration  coming  from  the  Holy  Spirit 
under  the  great  commission,  and  the  promise  of  large 
success,  and  full  reward,  can  keep  one  to  his  work. 

The  great  bulk  of  a  Secretary's  work  is  utterly  un- 
noticed and  unknown  by  the  Church  and  the  world.  An 
occasional  sermon  or  address,  an  article  of  commanding 
importance  and  interest,  read  by  a- few  of  his  brethren,  but 
neglected  by  more,  may  bring  helpful  recognition  and 
commendation :  but  by  far  the  larger  part  of  what  he  does 
is  so  little  known,  and  appreciated,  that  by  many  it  is 
hardly  believed  to  have  been  done  at  all. 

But  I  have  said  enough  —  too  much,  perhaps,  in  thus 
making  known  some  of  the  trials  common  to  our  brother 
who  has  entered  into  rest,  and  his  associates  who  live  to 
carry  forward  the  great  work,  without  his  help. 


i6 

Let  us  be  thankful  that  nothing  of  service  rendered  to 
Christ,  and  those  for  whom  He  died,  escape  His  loving 
notice,  or  will  be  without  full  reward.  And  let  us  rejoice 
that  another  servant  of  our  Lord,  whom  we  knew  and 
loved,  faithful  unto  death,  has  gone  to  receive  a  crown  of 
life.  The  forty  or  fifty  years  that  measure  the  time  of  his 
earthly  service,  cover  the  most  wonderful  period  of  the 
world's  history  in  relation  to  the  progress  of  the  Gospel. 
It  is  a  sacred  privilege  to  tarry  here,  and  toil,  and  suffer, 
for  the  Master  and  His  cause.  But  is  it  not  a  higher 
privilege,  to  be  called  to  His  presence  and  throne,  to  see 
the  King  in  His  beauty,  and,  at  that  centre  of  glory,  learn 
what  the  kingdom  is,  and  how  resistless  are  the  con- 
secrated forces  in  heaven  and  earth  that  are  combined  for 
the  conquest  of  the  world  ? 

It  is  an  honor  to  bear  the  name  of  one,  who  through 
grace  abounding,  wrought  for  the  Master  and  His  cause  as 
Dr.  Irving  wrought,  and  who  has  attained  to  such  exalta- 
tion. Instead  of  being  cast  down  and  disheartened  because 
he  has  left  us,  we  may  well  be  comforted  concerning  our 
brother,  and  moved  to  more  earnest  and  hopeful  service 
because  he  has  gone  to  be  "forever  with  the  Lord." 

We  cannot  greet  him  and  get  an  audible  answer ;  but 
we  can,  and  will,  say,  as  in  his  hearing. 


17 

"  Brother,  though  from  yonder  sky, 
Cometh  neither  voice  nor  cry. 
Yet  we  know  from  thee,  to-day, 
Every  pain  hath  passed  away." 

"  Not  for  thee  shall  tears  be  given, 
Child  of  God,  and  heir  of  heaven  : 
For  He  gave  thee  sweet  release  : 
Thine  the  Christian's  death  of  peace. 


"  While  we  weep,  as  Jesus  wept, 
Thou  shalt  sleep,  as  Jesus  slept  ; 
With  thy  Saviour  thou  shalt  rest. 
Crowned,  and  glorified,  and  blest." 


ADDRESS  BY  REV.  JOHN  HALL,  D.  D. 


In  July,  1884,  after  Dr.  Irving  had  suffered  in  the  way, 
to  which  allusion  has  already  been  made,  having  learned 
the  situation  in  which  he  was  placed,  I  went  down  from 
Belfast  to  Portrush,  that  I  might  see  him  and  express 
sympathy  with  him.  He  was  among  strangers  :  he  was  in 
great  physical  suffering :  his  life  was  in  some  degree  in 
danger :  he  was  away  from  the  tender  associate  of  his  life, 
and  from  his  family,  and  from  those  things  which  are 
commonly  regarded  as  mitigations  of  pain.  I  was,  as  you 
can  well  understand,  deeply  concerned  about  the  condition 
in  which,  in  the  Providence  of  God,  he  was  placed.  I  had 
opportunity  of  lengthened  conversation  with  him,  and  we 
had  prayer  together.  There  was  not  a  word  of  discontent : 
there  was  not  a  tone  of  despondency :  there  was  not  even 
an  allusion  to  anything  of  which  he  might  complain.     It 


20      • 

had  pleased  God  to  do  this,  it  was  God's  will,  and  the 
spirit  of  the  interview  was,  on  his  part,  God's  will  be  done. 

At  a  later  time,  when  he  had  come  to  this  side  of  the 
water,  I  had  an  opportunity  of  repeating  the  interview. 
Conditions  had  changed  in  a  good  degree,  but  he  had  not 
changed.  There  was  the  same  strong,  manly  nature,  bowed 
down  in  meek  and  loving  and  most  humble  submission 
before  his  Father  in  Heaven.  Since  that  time,  there  has 
been  long  endurance,  and  there  has  been  most  varied 
suffering :  there  has  been  a  fearful  strain  upon  faith  and 
hope,  but  God  helped  him  to  endure  the  strain,  and  filled 
his  heart  with  peace :  and  when  the  struggle  closed,  none 
could  hesitate  a  moment  to  speak  the  words  of  the  Bible 
over  the  silent  remains.  "  Blessed  are  the  dead  who  die  in 
the  Lord." 

Brethren,  when  we  do  great  public  services  under  the 
eye  of  our  fellow  men,  we  get  more  or  less  encouragement. 
We  cannot  always  be  sure  of  how  much  we  are  doing  for 
Christ,  how  much  in  the  view  of  our  brethren ;  but  when 
we  suffer,  and  there  is  no  complaint,  when  we  are  laid  aside 
and  there  is  a  gentle  submission,  we  are  bringing  forth, 
wdiat  may  be  called,  the  passive  fruits  of  righteousness ; 
there  is  the  clearest  possible  evidence  that  we  are  God's 
children,  that  He  is  teaching  us,  that  He  is  making  us  meet 
for  the  inheritance  of  the  saints  in  light. 


21 

After  what  has  been  so  fittingly  said  to  you  as  to  the 
public  services  rendered  by  our  brother,  it  is  not  needful 
for  me  to  refer  to  them.  As  connected  with  the  depart- 
ment of  missionary  labor  that  has  its  field  in  this  land,  I 
give  expression  for  my  associates  and  myself  to  the  deep 
sympathy  that  we  feel  for  his  associates,  who  labor  for  the 
foreign  field.  So  I  would  fain  give  expression  to  the 
tender  sympathies  that  we  feel  for  the  immediate  kindred 
and  family  bereft,  and  for  the  many  friends  who  have  known 
Dr.  Irving  for  many  years  as  the  true  man,  the  sweet  and 
reasonable  friend,  the  considerate  and  wise  associate,  the 
meek  and  gentle  Christian. 

Now  his  work  is  done  :  the  last  pain  has  been  endured  ; 
the  rest  has  been  entered ;  the  perfect  peace  has  begun ; 
the  reward  is  being  enjoyed;  the  lesson  is  being  given  to 
us.  Christian  workers,  Christian  sufferers,  Christian  min- 
isters, God  is  speaking  to  us.  He  is  bidding  us  lay  up 
treasure  in  heaven  ;  and  we  can  do  that  if  we  will.  The 
habits  of  mind  and  heart  that  we  form  in  life,  will  be 
developed  and  completed  there  ;  the  Christian  sympathies 
that  we  cherish,  the  aspirations  that  have  moved  within  us, 
the  high  ideals  that  we  set  before  us,  the  services  we  try  to 
render  for  Christ's  sake  to  friends  or  strangers,  the  sufferings 
that  we  endure  with  uncomplaining  patience,  the  memories 
that  we  shall  carry  with  us  into  the  presence  of  the  King  — 


22 

all  these  are  treasures  which  we  as  Christians  can  lay  up 
here  on  earth.  Let  us  be  busy,  busy  from  day  to  day,  busy 
as  God's  children  obeying  our  Father,  busy  in  the  work 
while  we  have  power  to  work  and  work  to  do,  and  when 
God  takes  away  the  power  or  withdraws  the  work,  let  us 
say  in  our  hearts,  "We  had  fathers  of  our  flesh  who 
corrected  us  and  we  gave  them  reverence ;  shall  we  not 
rather  be  in  subjection  to  the  Father  of  Spirits  and  live?" 
So  it  was  with  our  brother  through  all  the  weary  months 
that  preceded  dissolution. 

The  leaves  of  the  trees  were  green  and  beautiful 
through  the  summer.  A  change  has  come  over  many  of 
them  now.  They  are  no  longer  green,  but  they  are  still 
beautiful,  with  a  new  and  strange  beauty,  indicative,  indeed, 
of  the  fact  that  they  will  soon  fall;  but  they  are  beautiful 
still.  It  has  been  so  with  his  life,  but  there  is  a  wide 
difference.  The  leaf  fadeth  and  decayeth,  and  is  gone 
forever,  but  this  body  will  be  raised  up  and  reconstructed, 
and  made  like  unto  Christ's  glorified  body  ;  and  he  and 
we  shall  be  forever  with  the  Lord. 

These,  fellow  Christians,  brother  ministers,  these  are 
the  truths,  which  accepted  and  believed  by  us,  and  worked 
out,  effect  the  real  unity  between  the  life  that  is  here, 
and  the  greater  life  that  is  yonder.  "  Whether  we  live, 
we  live    unto   the    Lord ;    whether   we    die,  we   die    unto 


23 

the  Lord ;   whether  we  live,  therefore,  or  die,  we  are  the 
Lord's." 

Is  there  any  one  listening,  brought  here  by  regard  and 
esteem  for  him  whom  God  has  taken,  who  has  never 
accepted  Christ  and  received  the  atonement?  Then  let 
there  be  a  voice  to  that  soul  from  these  silent,  motionless 
remains.  Dear  friends,  make  his  Saviour  your  Saviour, 
and  his  Master  your  Master,  that  his  portion  may  be  your 
portion  in  the  great  hereafter. 


ADDRESS  BY  REV.  ALFRED  YEOMANS,  D.D. 


It  might  reasonably  be  expected,  that  the  passing 
away  of  so  strong  and  prominent  a  character  from  this 
community,  would  leave  a  void  which  would  be  very 
keenly  felt.  As  the  pastor  of  the  church  in  which  Dr. 
Irving  made  his  religious  home,  and  with  whose  whole 
history  he  was  so  closely  identified,  I  might  properly  say  a 
few  words  respecting  the  place  he  filled  as  a  parishioner 
and  a  personal  friend. 

As  was  natural  for  one  so  highly  endowed  by  force 
of  character,  clear  and  decided  convictions,  large  knowledge 
of  affairs,  and  eminent  administrative  ability.  Dr.  Irving 
stood  at  the  front  in  every  enterprise  to  which  he  put  his 
hand.  Within  a  year  after  he  took  up  his  residence  in 
Orange  he  became  the  leader  of  a  little  band  of  Presby- 
terian  families,   who,    recognizing   the   near   demand    for 


26 

Church  extension  in  this  city,  resolved  to  organize  this 
Church.  There  were  others  among  the  pioneers  in  this 
enterprise  who  were  able  to  contribute  more  largely  than 
he  of  pecuniary  aid,  though  he  was  always  generous  in  his 
gifts  ;  but  none  certainly  contributed  more  largely  of  moral 
and  spiritual  force  to  the  founding  of  this  Church.  I  have 
always  been  accustomed  to  regard  his  as  virtually  the 
organizing  hand,  the  force  that  gave  the  starting  impulse, 
and  I  rejoice  that  he  lived  long  enough  to  see  his  judgment 
justified  in  the  goodly  prosperity  of  this  Church. 

But  if  his  efficient  help  at  the  beginning  was  valuable, 
so  also  was  his  constant  counsel  all  along.  No  pastor 
could  ever  have  a  kinder  and  more  helpful  and  considerate 
parishioner  than  I  have  had  in  Dr.  Irving.  Ministers 
understand  how  much  of  grace  is  needed  to  sit  quietly  and 
contentedly  in  the  pew  under  the  ministrations  of  those 
younger  than  themselves,  and  with  less  of  the  wisdom 
which  comes  from  experience.  And  they  will  know  how 
to  appreciate  the  grace  and  goodness  of  the  man,  when  I 
say  that  never  in  all  the  seventeen  years  of  my  relation  to 
Dr.  Irving,  as  the  pastor  of  his  family,  have  I  ever 
experienced  anything  but  the  kindest,  most  brotherly  and 
helpful  treatment  at  his  hands.  His  counsel  was  invaluable 
to  me.  And  though  he  was  not  so  far  my  superior  in 
years  as  to  make  it  natural  for  me  to  call  him  a  father,  yet 


27 

there  was  in  him  a  certain  ripeness  of  wisdom,  and  clear- 
ness and  decision  of  judgment,  that  constrained  me  to  look 
up  to  him  as  to  a  father  and  constantly  resort  to  him  for 
advice.  I  relied  implicitly  upon  that  advice,  and  never  did 
I  have  occasion  to  regret  such  confidence.  Now  that  he  is 
gone  from  us,  and  the  lips  that  were  wont  to  utter  such 
kindly  counsel  are  sealed  in  death,  I  feel  as  though  the 
strong  staff  were  broken. 

Perhaps  this  readiness  to  take  responsibility  upon 
himself,  and  lend  the  help  of  his  strong  hand  to  those  that 
sought  it,  has  had  much  to  do  with  what  we  cannot  but 
regard  as  an  untimely  death.  We  are  all  too  willing  to 
lay  burdens  upon  those  whose  broad  and  ready  shoulders 
seem  to  be  made  to  bear  them.  Others  have  spoken  of  his 
arduous  toil  as  a  Secretarj^  of  Foreign  Missions.  The  same 
faithful  and  unsparing  diligence  characterized  everything 
that  he  did.  His  capacity  for  work  was  enormous.  Con- 
scious of  powers  of  endurance  beyond  those  of  ordinary 
men,  he  was  too  ready  to  tax  them  to  the  full,  and  no 
doubt  the  limit  of  prudence  was  passed  long  before  the  first 
break  in  his  strength  gave  warning  of  danger.  Ten  years 
more  of  solid  work  might  reasonably  have  been  expected 
from  one  of  his  vigorous  constitution.  But  the  habit  of 
work  had  so  grown  upon  him  that  he  had  virtually  lost  all 
relish  for  rest  and   recreation,  and  could  not  realize  the 


28 

necessity  of  unbending  the  bow.  After  laboring  hard  at 
his  office  desk  for  six  days  in  the  week,  he  would  often 
make  the  Sabbath  also  a  working  day  by  supplying  the 
pulpits  of  his  brethren  in  the  ministry,  that  they  might 
enjoy  a  breathing  spell.  Thus  through  winter's  cold  and 
summer's  heat  he  wrought  on,  refusing  the  rest  which 
others  could  see  he  greatly  needed. 

While  his  life  was  thus  given  to  serious  labors,  and 
his  soul  was  absorbed  by  the  service  of  His  master,  and[  the 
progress  of  the  kingdom  of  righteousness,  there  was  no 
cold  abstraction  in  mood  or  manner  which  held  him  apart 
from  friends  and  neighbors  as  though  he  lived  in  a  separate 
world.  A  genial  wit  and  kindly  humor  lighted  up  his 
stern  and  earnest  devotion  to  work,  and  made  his  presence 
the  life  of  the  home  and  the  social  circle.  The  tenderest 
sympathy  with  those  in  trouble  drew  around  him  devoted 
friends.  Always  cheerful  and  bright,  he  was  a  welcome 
guest  at  any  fireside.  And  never  did  he  seem  impatient  of 
interruption  in  his  work  or  disturbance  of  his  rest  when 
any  opportunity  occurred  pf  helping  a  friend  with  counsel, 
or  cheering  him  with  bright  and  hopeful  sympathy. 

But  when  the  thought  of  incompleteness  comes  over 
us,  as  we  contemplate  the  strong  man  too  early  laid  in  his 
grave,  we  must  remember  that  with  the  humble  believer  in 
Christ,  nothing  is  incomplete.     "Ye  are  complete  in  Him," 


29 

Seemingly  unfinished  labors,  when  Christ  calls  his  faithfijl 
servant  to  his  reward,  are  complete  in  Him.  The  work 
which  Christ  has  broken  off,  He  will  finish.  Dr.  Irving 
seemed  to  covet  the  benediction,  "  Blessed  is  that  servant 
whom  his  Lord,  when  He  cometh,  shall  find  so  doingT  His 
ambition  seemed  to  be  to  die  in  harness. 

But  let  us  turn  now  for  comfort  to  those  precious 
words  which  God  has  written  for  the  consolation  of 
mourners,  "For  if  we  believe  that  Jesus  died  and  rose 
again,  even  so  them  also  which  sleep  in  Jesus  will  God 
bring  with  Him." 

"  Weep  not  for  death  ! 

'Tis  but  a  fever  stilled, 
A  pain  suppressed,  a  fear  at  rest, 
A  solemn  hope  fulfilled." 

He  has  fought  a  good  fight,  he  has  finished  his  course, 
he  has  kept  the  faith  ;  henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  him  a 
crown  of  righteousness  which  the  Lord  the  righteous  Judge 
shall  give  him  at  that  day,  and  not  to  him  only  but  unto  all 
them  also  that  love  His  appearing. 


Copy  of  Minute  adopted  by  the  Board  of  Foreign 
Missions  at  a  meeting  held  November  2d,  1885. 

That  in  the  removal  by  death  ot  our  late  Secretary, 
Rev.  David  Irving,  D.  D.,  on  12th  of  October,  1885,  we 
bow  with  submission  to  God's  sovereign  will,  while  lament- 
ing our  own  loss  of  a  fellow  laborer  and  brother  beloved, 
and  the  loss  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  which  he  served, 
faithfully  and  well,  as  a  Foreign  Missionary,  as  a  Pastor, 
and,  for  the  last  twenty  years,  as  Corresponding  Secretary 
of  this  Board. 

We  recognize  the  great  loss  sustained  by  our  mission- 
aries, especially  those  in  fields  lately  under  his  immediate 
charge,  in  the  severance  of  a  relation  involving  so  much 
mature  judgment  in  the  oversight  of  their  work,  and  so 
much  tender  sympathy  in  their  personal  welfare. 

Arthur  Mitchell, 

Secretary. 


The  following  tribute  to  the  memory  of  Dr.  Irving 
was  published  in  The  Presbyterian  of  November  21st,  1885, 
from  Rev.  F.  F.  Ellinwood,  D.  D.,  Corresponding  Secre- 
tary of  the  Board  of  Foreign  Missions : 

It  was  in  a  morning  paper  of  San  Francisco  that  I  first 
learned  of  the  death  of  my  esteemed  colleague,  Dr.  Irving. 
It  was  not  altogether  a  surprise,  for  at  our  last  interview  I 
had  found  that  a  paralysis  in  his  extremities  was  slowly 
creeping  toward  the  seat  of  life,  and  that  ere  many  days  he 
would  doubtless  be  called  to  his  rest.  Though  he  had  been 
detained  for  months  from  the  Mission  House,  it  is  still 
difficult  to  realize  that  my  yoke  fellow  for  so  many  years 
has  been  forever  removed.  It  is  sad  to  think  how,  in  these 
times  of  high  pressure  and  intellectual  absorption,  even 
those  who  have  been  most  honored  in  their  life-work  are  so 
soon  forgotten,  save  in  the  nearer  circle  of  friends  and 
kindred,  and  I  wish,  as  a  matter  of  hearty  esteem,  to  lay 


34 

one  little  flower  upon  the  tomb  of  my  associate,  assured 
that,  transient  as  the  tribute  may  be,  the  savor  of  his 
influence  will  survive  in  the  Church  and  its  Missions  even 
unto  the  Great  Day. 

I  deem  myself  fortunate  in  having  been  associated  with 
one  of  so  much  solidity  and  genuineness  of  character.  For 
fourteen  years  we  had  labored  together  as  one  man,  our 
offices  being  situated  directly  opposite,  across  a  narrow 
hall,  and  our  daily  and  almost  hourly  intercourse  had 
passed  without  a  word  of  unkindness  or  discourtesy,  even 
in  our  widest  differences  of  opinion. 

Dr.  Irving  held,  with  a  true  Scotch  tenacity,  to  his 
convictions ;  and  they  were  convictions,  and  not  mere  con- 
venient sentiments,  chosen  for  a  purpose.  It  is  rare  that 
one  meets  with  such  downrightness  and  truthfulness  of 
mind  —  such  entire  coincidence  between  the  thought  and 
the  aim.  It  was  in  matters  of  judgment  and  counsel  that 
the  strong  points  of  Dr.  Irving  were  to  be  found,  and  it  is 
no  mean  tribute  to  his  memory  to  say  that  he  was  most 
thoroughly  appreciated  in  the  inner  circles  of  the  Mission 
House,  where  he  was  known  best.  He  was  fitted  for  his 
place  by  that  judicial  fairness  which  was  always  observable 
in  his  conclusions.  No  judgment  was  formed  from  preju- 
dice, much  less  from  the  promptings  of  self-interest.  He 
was  conservative,  but  never  blindly  so. 


35 

His  interest  in  the  work  of  Missions  showed  itself  in 
his  early  consecration  to  the  active  service  at  the  front,  and 
was  to  the  end  so  deep  and  genuine  that  it  seemed  to 
constitute  a  part  of  his  veiy  life.  It  is  difficult  to  conceive 
of  a  greater  trial  than  that  which  he  experienced,  during 
the  weary  months  of  languishing,  in  being  debarred  from 
the  privilege  of  laboring  still  for  the  great  and  beloved 
cause. 

His  belief  not  only  in  the  claims,  but  in  the  entire 
feasibility  and  ultimate  success  of  the  Mission  work  seemed 
as  clear  and  deep  as  the  consciousness  of  his  own  being. 
His  convictions  on  the  subject,  like  those  of  the  great  first 
missionary  to  the  Gentiles,  were  based  upon  an  uncom- 
promising conviction  of  the  great  doctrines  of  moral  ruin  — 
deep,  helpless  and  hopeless  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  a  full 
and  availing  salvation  on  the  other.  Rejoicing  always  in 
visible  success,  he  was  not  disturbed  by  discouragements, 
as  if  engaged  in  a  mere  human  venture,  for  he  never 
doubted  that  his  omnipotent  Master  was  able  to  achieve. 

There  was  a  sunny  side  in  the  character  of  Dr.  Irving 
which  I  love  to  think  of  With  all  his  .moral  earnestness 
there  was  a  breezy  and  jocular  element  which  often  proved 
a  refreshment  amid  the  heavy  cares  and  perplexities  of  the 
missionary  work.  He  performed  his  tasks  with  dispatch, 
and  thus  found  time  frequently  to  cross  the  hall  and  stir  us 


36 

up  with  some  pleasant  sallies,  or  a  new  story  which  was 
too  good  to  keep,  and  thus  many  a  time  he  broke  the  spell 
of  anxiety  and  helped  us  to  approach  a  hard  problem  on  a 
new  tack.  Not  only  his  associates,  but  all  the  clerks  and 
employees  of  the  Mission  House  felt  the  cheer  of  his 
influence,  and  learned  to  value  this  element  in  his  character, 
of  which  those  who  knew  him  less  intimately  were  not 
aware. 

It  was  a  noticeable  fact  that  his  friendships  were 
peculiarly  deep  and  lasting.  Those  who  had  once  come 
into  his  closer  confidences  were  strongly  attached  to  him 
through  life.  And  I  do  not  remember  to  have  known  any 
one  who  was  more  faithful  and  devoted  to  his  friends  than 
he,  or  upon  whom  they  could  call  for  help,  in  season  and 
out  of  season,  with  greater  assurance  of  success. 

An  erroneous  impression  seems  to  have  prevailed  that 
Dr.  Irving's  death  was  a  result  of  the  accident  which  befel 
him  in  June,  1884,  in  Ireland,  The  shock  produced  by 
that  casualty  doubtless  hastened  his  death,  but  the  real 
cause  was  pre-existent  and  much  deeper.  Six  years  ago 
there  was  developed  an  obscure  nervous  disease  which 
greatly  prostrated  him,  and  from  which  a  year's  absence  in 
Europe  did  not  fully  restore  him ;  and  it  was  felt  by  those 
who  knew  him  best  that  sooner  or  later  that  affection 
would  end  in  his  death. 


37 

In  the  days  of  his  strength  Dr.  Irving  had  seemed 
altogether  the  most  vigorous  man  in  the  Mission  House, 
but  the  old  maxim  that  "the  race  is  not  to  the  swift,  nor 
the  battle  to  the  strong,"  has  again  been  illustrated,  and  he 
whose  work  for  his  Master  was  his  chief  joy  found  grace  to 
say,  "  Nevertheless  not  my  will,  but  Thine  be  done,"  and 
his  end  was  peace. 

F.  F.  Ellinvvood, 

New  York,  November  lo,  1885. 


Minute  adopted  by  the  Session  of  the  First  Pres- 
byterian Church  of  Morristown,  New  Jersey,  held 
October  i8th,  1885. 

In  view  of  the  death  on  Monday,  the  12th  of  October 
instant,  of  Rev.  David  Irving,  D.  D.,  for  twenty  years  one 
of  the  Secretaries  of  the  Board  of  Foreign  Missions,  and 
previously  for  ten  years  Pastor  of  this  Church,  Session 
discharge  a  sad  but  grateful  duty,  in  entering  on  their 
minutes  their  appreciation  of  his  personal  worth  and  his  uni- 
formly dignified  ministerial  bearing  and  Christian  courtesy. 

No  page  of  the  history  of  this  venerable  Church, 
which  has  been  blessed  with  so  many  faithful  and  earnest 
ministers,  records  a  more  successful  pastorate,  so  far  as 
success  is  to  be  measured  by  additions  to  the  Church,  and 
especially  by  the  development  and  cultivation  of  a  spirit  of 
beneficence.  The  record  of  his  pastorate  here  will  ever 
constitute  a  living  testimony  to  his  zeal  and  faithfulness  in 
the  Master's  service. 


40 

Of  him  it  may  be  truly  said  that  he  obeyed  the 
exhortation  of  the  Apostle,  "  in  feeding  the  flock  of  God, 
taking  the  oversight  thereof  not  by  constraint  but  willingly, 
not  for  filthy  lucre,  but  of  a  ready  mind,  neither  as  being 
lord  over  God's  heritage,  but  being  an  ensample  to  the 
flock,"  and  we  rejoice  in  the  assurance  that  when  the  Chief 
Shepherd  shall  appear,  "  he  shall  receive  a  crown  of  glory 
that  fadeth  not  away." 

James  R.  Vookhees, 

Clerk. 


The  Session  of  the  Central  Church  desire  to  put 
on  record  their  sense  of  previous  loss  in  the  death  of  Dr. 
David  Irving.  He  was  a  brother  not  only  beloved  among 
us  for  his  high  Christian  character  and  genial  spirit,  but 
esteemed  and  honored  as  a  leader  in  this  Church,  to  whom 
its  organization  and  prosperous  establishment  were  largely- 
due. 

We  desire  with  thankfulness  to  our  Heavenly  Father 
to  acknowledge  our  indebtedness  for  the  many  natural  and 
gracious  gifts  which  made  him  an  invaluable  helper  in  our 
councils  and  labors,  and  for  the  goodness  of  the  Lord 
through  which  he  was  enabled  for  so  many  years  to  work 
and  pray  for  the  welfare  of  the  Church  he  loved,  as  well  as 
for  the  interests  of  the  Master's  cause  at  large. 

We  sorrow  with  the  bereaved  family,  and  tender  to 
them  in  their  great  affliction  our  sincerest  sympathies, 
while  we  look  forward  with  them  to  the  time  when  those 
that  sleep  in  Jesus  shall  be  changed  into  the  likeness  of  his 


42 

own  glorious  body,  and  these  broken  fellowships  shall  be 
restored. 

It  was  ordered  that  this  paper  be  placed  on  record  in 
the  minutes  of  Session,  and  that  a  copy  be  tendered  to  the 
family  of  Dr.  Irving. 


Signed, 


Alfred  Yeomans, 

Pastor. 

J.  H.  Hazard, 
David  L.  Wallace, 
A.  R.  McCoy, 
Charles  H.  Jones,  ^ 


Elders. 


Orange,  November  8th,  1885. 


C.  H.  Jones  &  Co.,  Printers,  114  Fulton  Street,  N.  Y. 


^^. 

>. 


^  /: 


s:^} 


«1 


3--..V:v 


/:;5 


